OAB, Alizz Islamic Bank merger talks progressing well: Ominvest

The discussions for a potential merger between Oman Arab Bank (OAB) and Alizz Islamic Bank are progressing well, according to Ominvest.

OAB is the banking subsidiary of Ominvest.

‘OAB’s potential merger discussions with Alizz Islamic Bank are progressing well. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed and the regulators have granted initial approvals to proceed with the process. The banks are currently engaged in the due diligence exercise’, Ominvest said in the company report submitted to the Muscat Securities Market on Wednesday.

If completed, the merger will further strengthen OAB’s market position and enable it to offer a wider array of products and services to both conventional and Islamic customers, Ominvest said.

As per Ominvest’s quarterly report, OAB reported a 15.9 per cent growth in profit for the first quarter of 2019 at RO7.2mn compared to RO6.2mn for the same period in 2018.

‘Building onto its strong performance in 2018, OAB remains on a growth track and is expected to delivery healthy results in 2019 and in the years ahead’, Ominvest added.